Mind Reader
by Chirp
Summary: *COMPLETE* Harry has to tap into his mind-reading abilities to help Hermione, risking his friendships and life. H/Hr, Please RR
1. The Maruader's Map

"Hello, Hermione," came a cold voice from beyond the staircase.  
  
She gasped, scarcely sure she had heard it. Clutching her small towel to her showered and naked body, she turned slowly.  
  
A tall, thin young man leaned casually against the banister. He looked calm and at the same time slick... silvery. Draco Malfoy.  
  
She wanted to screech and wake everyone up. Instead, she whispered in a soft but violent voice, "What are you doing here Malfoy?"  
  
He grinned smoothly and started walking toward her. Slowly at first, then almost running, Hermione backed away, like a cornered mouse, still holding fast to the skimpy bath towel.  
  
"Oh, just wanted to go for a midnight stroll..." he mused.  
  
"That's a lie!" she insisted shrilly, hitting against the counter. "Not in the Gryffindor Girls' Tower, Malfoy!"  
  
"What makes you think that, Mione?"  
  
"Just leave! Please!"  
  
"Oh, I will. Tonight I will." Draco reached forward and caressed her bare shoulder; she winced. Then he was gone.  
  
"Tonight?" Hermione asked, quivering, to the empty room.  
  
* * * * *  
  
"What's wrong, muffin?" was the question posed by Ron Weasly as he and his two best friends lounged in the Gryffindor common room. He turned to his girlfriend on the couch they shared, catching a glimpse of Harry sitting adjacent to the couch on a lounging chair.  
  
"Oh, nothing, Ron..." Hermione sighed dramatically. "Just a silly dream... at least I think so..."  
  
"About what?"  
  
She faltered. "About you, Ronnie; it was magical!" Her false, sweet smile even fooled her. But not Ron.  
  
"Aw, how sweet, Herm," Ron mussed her wavy brown hair affectionately, "but it unfortunately was a dream. I slept soundly last night."  
  
Harry cocked his head at Hermione. He knew something was up. He had always been able to read her mind, vaguely at least. She knew it, and therefore avoided eye contact with him... He adored her, really. He knew deep down she felt the same, just spooked by his ability... and of course, there was Ron's love for her. Harry could never go against his best friend.  
  
"Harry? Harry?" Ron's voice sounded far away until Harry snapped.  
  
"I'm sorry, I was fantasizing... what were you saying?"  
  
Ron got a cruel, playful smile. "Oh... and who is the object of your fantasys?"  
  
Hermione stared at the floor. Harry squirmed. "Uh... erm... you know..."  
  
Ron apparently found this amusing; he snickered, "Actually I don't quite yet. Care to share it with the class, Harry?"  
  
Hermione punched him playfully, forcing a laugh. "Oh, don't be such an ass, Ron, if he doesn't want to tell us he mustn't."  
  
"Yes, yes, and you're overdo for a kiss," he teased, gently pulling her towards him and brushing her lips. Harry turned away. "Shall we take a stroll outside, Mione?"  
  
"Sure, Ronnie." With Ron's arm secured around her shoulders, they left the room, leaving Harry along with his thoughts.  
  
A cool breeze set many a piece of Hermione's loose hair astray, but it felt all too good against her lightly freckled skin. As she gazed around the grounds, she felt as if she was in a movie, peering out at the picturesque landscapes and green milieu. With Ron holding her, she felt perfect, like she was in the right place at the right time.  
  
And yet... and yet, something was off, astray, awry... and Hermione knew it, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. Whatever it was...  
  
The thought melted away as she shivered, remember last night's incident with Draco Malfoy. Had it happened? Was she just having an awful nightmare? But, she was sure she had gone to bed after that happened, and sure she had showered and stepped out just like that, and sure that she had heard that... heard the echoing of "tonight"... And she had to wonder if he'd be back.  
  
"...go... Malfoy... Huffle..."  
  
Hermione could hear Ron speaking to her in the background, but only with the icy sound of Malfoy's name did she tune in. "What'd you say?  
  
"I said, 'Last night Malfoy was caught sneaking around the Hufflepuff tower'," Ron repeated, sounding slightly agitated.  
  
"Oh?" she replied faintly, feeling her knees go weak. Then it did happen... "Is that it?"  
  
"Well, McGonnagel said that he swears he hadn't gone in the tower, and with the lie detector spell and all, he was right. But, they did find him with an invisibility cloak," Ron suddenly yawned, boring himself. "I wonder how he came about that find."  
  
"Yes..." Hermione swallowed heavily, further words caught in her throat mercilessly.  
  
"You 'kay?"  
  
"I..." she sputtered. "Just fine, Ron," she flashed him a quick, cheesy smile. "I'm going to go to the library, now, alright?"  
  
"Aw, Herm..."  
  
"I promise I won't be long, Ronnie." She leaned up to lightly kiss his nose and strode across the unbelievably green grass and into the castle that was Hogwarts.  
  
The corridor seemed longer than usual but she dismissed that... until in about five minutes it seemed she was still the same distance from the Hogwarts Library. She stopped, confused. "Hello?" she shouted, suddenly noticing that not a single soul was in sight, and there were no doors on the sides of the walls. "What the--"  
  
Hermione felt a hand clamp down hard on her mouth and no one heard her scream.  
  
Harry's fingers tentatively held the small piece of worn parchment, his grip so light on the paper that it almost slipped from his clutches. The Marauder's Map... echoed in his mind, and he parted his lips and softly spoke. "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."  
  
The map seemed to come alive, small colored dots appearing on its crinkled texture. He could see Professor Dumbledore in the 2^nd Corrdior and Snape in the Herbology room with Prof. Flitwick. Ginny was in the Gryffindor common room with Colin Creevey, Lavender Brown, and Lee Jordan. Hermione's red dot and Ron's blue seemed awfully close on the outside grounds... in fact, Harry could swear they seemed to make a purple.  
  
Then, they sprung apart and the red dot started to make its way down the 1^st Corridor, toward the library. Funny, Harry wrinkled his nose, Hermione hasn't moved in 30 seconds, and yet she's not standing still. Suddenly, a sheer, silver dot swooped out of the Transfiguration room and collided with the red dot, Hermione. And then, she disappeared, and it was only the vapor-like dot, moving rapidly down the hall.  
  
Harry blinked. He was not sure that he had seen correctly. Furthermore, the silver dot had not been labeled... and Hermione had disappeared with it. And that she hadn't moved in quite a while. His blood ran cold, feeling that something was terribly wrong. The Marauder Map never lied...  
  
He shook off the feeling, assuming that it was a freak accident or something of the likes. He decided to set off and find Ron, whose blue dot was still wandering the grounds. 


	2. Malfoy

Ron's mind was a million miles away as he heard the faint pitter-patter of an approching figure. Turning, he saw Harry with a blank expression on his face. ^Always hard to read^ Ron chuckled to himself. ^He'd be great at that Muggle Game, poker... or is it Go Fish...?^  
  
"Hey, Ron." Harry's voice sounded a bit more weary than his demeanor had let on.  
  
"What are the headlines, Harry?"  
  
"I thought Hermione had come out with you."  
  
"Yeah," Ron scowled, "but she had to go to the library. Isn't she always there?"  
  
"I guess," Harry shrugged. "I better go find her..." He trailed off, and looked up at Ron, long and hard.  
  
"Har, stop staring!" Ron snickered, with a mocking tone. "You're making me blush."  
  
"Shutup, Ron!" he smirked. ^His mind doesn't seem up to anything...^  
  
Harry thought it was most peculiar that his mind-reading gift, which had begun appearing during 5^th year, only worked on certain people. The common denominator between the people--Hermione, Ginny, the Weasly twins, Oliver Wood, Ron, and etc.--he had yet to figure out.  
  
With nothing more to say, Harry trudged off with a heavy sigh in the direction of the library. But, he had a feeling Hermione wouldn't be there.  
  
Harry quietly entered the library unnoticed and slinked to the new librarian Windsa May's desk. She peered up at him through her narrow, elliptical eyeglasses. "Can I help you, Mr. Potter?" came the eery sound of her monotone voice.  
  
Harry cleared his throat. "Have you seen Hermione Granger?"  
  
Mrs. May gave a sick sort of weezing chuckle. "Heh, heh... when haven't I seen Ms. Granger? Always in here, reading and reading and--"  
  
"I meant today," Harry briskly cut her off, finding himself becoming impatient in his nervousness. "Have you seen her today?"  
  
Mrs. May seemed to want to give him a dirty look but supressed it into a cheesy, twisted smirk. "Turn your head, Mr. Potter, she's at the Muggle Studies Literature table." She pointed her gnarled finger toward behind him.  
  
Imagine Harry's surprise when he saw Hermione, sitting perfectly normal at the described table, her nose in a thick novel. He strode over rapidly, legs not carrying him fast enough to find out what had happened. He tripped on a stool, sending it plunking to the ground.  
  
"Ssshhhhh, Mr. Potter!" he heard the librarian hiss. He regained his composure and approched the oblivious Hermione.  
  
"Hermione?" It was more of a question than an address, for he scarcely believed that she was there, that it was her. She didn't respond. "Her-Hermione?" he repeated again, a tremor rising in his throat.  
  
This time she peeked up, and her brown eyes lit up. "Oh, hello Harry," she smiled. "What brings you hear."  
  
Harry felt his power surge, her thoughts becoming his. ^I wonder what Harry wants... I wish he'd leave me back to my book, I need to find out what happens to Dantes.^  
  
"Harry?" Hermione's voice jolted him out of her thoughts, and he blinked several times. "Harry, what are you doing?"  
  
"Uh, nothing... have you been... where...?"  
  
"Spit it out, Harry, I have to find out what happens to Edmond Dantes, kay?" Hermione was apparently agitated, extremely out of character for the mild-mannered girl.  
  
"Never mind," Harry shrugged. "I have to be going. I'll see you later."  
  
"Sure, sure," she waved him off, and Harry left reluctantly.  
  
He had seen her thoughts, and they had been innocent enough. The Marauder Map must have been playing tricks on his eyes, for she had no recollection of anything occuring on her short exodus to the library.  
  
Harry stopped outside of the library, removing his glassed for a quick inspection when SLAM! Harry went crashing to the ground when a tall figure collided with him. Harry looked up and shivered.  
  
"Way to move, Potter," Malfoy spat. "Now I see why you do that crappy game Quidditch and not gymnastics."  
  
Harry rolled his eyes, but he could not resist a reply. "I thought you played Quidditch? Crappy players for a crappy game?"  
  
"Bull, I quit Quidditch," Malfoy sneered. "It's a stupid waste of time."  
  
"I'm sorry," Harry said sarcastically. "I should have realized you only play Dark-Art games, like Kill-The-Innocent and Destroy-The-World!"  
  
Malfoy huffed angrily and stalked off. Harry didn't even try to read his mind; not only did he not get a reception, he received a numbing feel. Yep, Malfoy was a mystery that Harry wasn't even going to get into. But Ginny was.  
  
He was tall and golden and Ginny found herself blushing from the doorway of the Potions room. It was strange for Ginny... She hated Malfoy, truly, but he was so... She sighed heavily, watching him storm across the corridor, his grey eyes looking angry enough to shoot lightning bolts, his usual scowl on his pale face.  
  
Ginny coughed, much to her embarassment, and Draco looked at her, his scowl deepening. "Scram, Weasle," he hissed, stomping off.  
  
"I'm sorry, Malfoy, I didn't realize that your father bought this hallway for you as well as your Quidditch position," she retorted. Ginny was often known as the firecracker of the red-headed Weaslys, with a sharp, bold tongue. She had been gaining a reputation of not being "in the shell" and taking no crap.  
  
^If she thinks she's a challenge...^ Malfoy thought ^then she's right.^ The youngest Weasly was a bit of a confusing person in Draco's eyes. She was very pretty and smart, but there was something else. Draco had to snicker at the thought of kissing her in front of Ron.  
  
"That's real good, Weasly," he snorted. "Don't you have a scar-faced idol to go worship?"  
  
"Don't you have a mirror to go worship?"  
  
^Damn^ Draco cursed himself. ^She always wins, always.^ And he stomped off.  
  
Ginny felt her blood boiling. He may be cute, but she hated Draco Malfoy. 


	3. The Astronomy Tower

^I think I love her...^ Harry flopped down on his bed, defeated. The worst part was, he was sure she felt the same. He knew it, he had seen it in her head, her thoughts. Why did she deny it? Why did he have to be tortured with this gift? Why? Why?  
  
There was a knock on the door. "Yeah," he croaked, not really asking or stating, just inviting in. The door opened slowly. His favorite brunette stood at the door with her hand over eyes. "You dressed, Harry?"  
  
^She's not trying to cover her eyes, but her thoughts.^ Harry played with the idea in his mind. "Uh-huh."  
  
She looked at him, and her eyes looked mournfully sad. "Hey..." She sat on the edge of his bed. Harry sat up with a sigh and looked at her. ^She's so beautiful^ he said to himself wistfully. Her brown hair was pulled into a messy bun and her eyes reflected the ample light streaming in front his bedside window.  
  
"Yeah, Herm, what's up?" He noticed how dead and devoid his own voice sounded, and realizing he had not meant to sound so pitiful, quickly added in a more cheerful voice, "What's on your mind?" As soon as he spit the words out, he regretted it. Hermione's face fell, and without even focusing he knew what she must be thinking, that he should be saying that. She looked up at him, swallowing hard.  
  
"Why... why does it have to be like this?"  
  
Harry frowned, trying to understand the meaning of her simply stated words. "Are you alright, Hermione?"  
  
"Harry-" She cut herself off as she leaned into him and kissed him. Just for a second, but it was a kiss. He stared at her, too surprised to be confused. "Harry... just don't think."  
  
He nodded, lifted his hand to her ivory face and kissing her... this time for more than a second. And he didn't even try to read her mind. He didn't think.  
  
~#~#~#~#~#~#  
  
Two weeks had passed, and their relationship had been of the likes of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. One minute they were tearing at each other's throats, and the next sneaking off for a stolen kiss. No one could understand the sudden changes in behavior, not Ron, not Ginny, not even Malfoy.  
  
It was at 4:07 that Hermione was called for to meet with Professor Dumbledore, which made her extremely uneasy. She was a model student, and positive she had done nothing wrong. ^I shouldn't have spilled my potion on Neville's shoe... or maybe Snape heard me ridiculing him...^ The thoughts made her extremely nervewracked.  
  
She hesitantly knocked on the Headmaster's door and it swung open, as if automatic. "You wanted to see me?"  
  
"Yes, sit down Ms. Granger," glinted the gleaming eyes of Dumbledore. "Professor McGonnagel had reported some unfortunate news to me. Your grades have been slipping, she says."  
  
"But, I'm still received the highest marks!" Hermione protested, jumping out of her seat frantically. "I am, I know it!"  
  
Dumbledore waved her down, and so she sat. "But, Ms. Granger, you have been teetering at the lower end of the high marks, as you once were at the top. You've heard of Muggles with their A+ and A and A-, correct?"  
  
"Yes, Professor," she mumbled, somewhat heartbroken. Grades meant so much to Hermione. She remembered first reading the letter, amazed that she would be attending Hogwarts. She knew that she had to keep the high marks, or she'd be lost.  
  
After excusing herself, she walked down the corridor feeling unusally cold. She knew why her marks had been declining. ^I'm just so guilty about Ron... I know I shouldn't be seeing Harry, and he, me, but I really do like Harry... I have to stop this.^ With her mind made up, she sought out Harry Potter.  
  
~@~@~@~@  
  
It was Potions class, and Harry had felt Hermione's eyes on the back of his head throughout all of the period. He knew better than to turn to talk to her, for Snape was giving a lecture... But he had an idea.  
  
He turned briefly and caught her eye, concentrating on her thoughts. ^Harry.... Harry...^ He was getting something, but he needed something more than a glance. He looked at her once more, and stared. ^Harry... read this... we need to talk... Astronomy Tower... midnight... please be reading this...^  
  
"Potter!" came the outraged scream of the angered Snape. "Please focus on something other than Ms. Granger, will you?" He blinked, breaking off the connection, but Harry had received the message. He turned to Snape and sat quietly, waiting for the toll of the Gryffindor House points. "20 points, Potter, 20 points!" Harry got the feeling that Snape enjoyed penalizing points, not just from him or Gryffindor. ^Sad...^  
  
Ron turned to see the spectacle Snape was creating and jealousy crept into his thoughts... ^Please don't be reading this, Harry...^ he pleaded in his thoughts, but Harry just stared at Snape vindictively. ^Harry's my friend, he wouldn't be interested in Hermione. He wouldn't. But... would he?^  
  
"Where are you going, Potter?" Even though it was the Gryffindor boys' room at a quarter to midnight, Harry looked to the right, half-expected the speaker to be Draco Malfoy. But it wasn't.  
  
It was Ron. "Ron? Did you just call me `Potter'?"  
  
Ron shook his head. "Sorry, Harry. Well, where are you going?"  
  
They both eyed the invisibility cloak that Harry grasped in his right hand. "I'm just going to meet a girl." ^It's the truth...^ Harry thought, feeling guilty nonetheless.  
  
Ron's eyes narrowed. "What girl?"  
  
Harry tuned into Ron's thoughts. Even though he looked itnensely, the thoughts were coming through quite foggily. ^Maybe... Laven... own...^ he was able to make out. "Lavender Brown." Harry replied quickly. ^Ron'll have to believe me. After all, it was his suggestion.^  
  
Ron seemed to accept this. "Well, okay... don't get any more points taken though, kay?"  
  
Harry nodded and hurried out the door.  
  
~!~!~!~!~!~!  
  
Dashing through the halls, Harry couldn't imagine what was so wrong that had put such a demure expression on Hermione's face in Potions. ^She wouldn't break up with me, would she? Are we even going out? Is she in trouble?^ His last thought was added remembering her mentioned visit with Professor Dumbledore.  
  
He was almost breathless when he walked into the location of Hermione's choice, first realizing he had been running. He saw her sitting on a desk, looking pained, but not at him.  
  
"Herm, what?"  
  
"Harry, let's talk--and please don't read my mind," she breathed. Harry forced himself to look away and prevent himself from looking into her thoughts.  
  
"Harry, my grades are suffering, and it's from guilt," she looked up, ashamed. "We need to stop this. I'm Ron's girlfriend."  
  
Harry walked over to her, brushing her cheek with his hand. "I figured... I really like you, though Hermione. But Ron..."  
  
"It's just the wrong time..." she said, losing her breath as she noticed Harry closer to her.  
  
"...And the wrong time." He kissed her, and she did not resist. They pulled apart and he looked into her eyes. "I know we shouldn't... oh, Hermione..."  
  
"...Harry..." her breath was heavy, husky, looking into his eyes, brushing a curly black bang from his forehead.  
  
"Hermione..." Harry leaned in for another kiss, just centimeters away from her lips. He could feel her breath. He hit... her cheek???  
  
Her head had turned to the doorway where a seething figure stood. "Ron!" she exclaimed.  
  
***Em, thanks for my first review. Love Count of Monte Christo! I changed the thing about Ron's thoughts when I had a sudden burst of inspiration for the plot, so re-read it. 


	4. Disturbing Remembrance

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A/N: Sorry this chapter is short but I couldn't think of a better way to end it. That's all for tonight, the story should only be a chapter or two longer.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. Nor do I own Cheez Whiz, but that's a different story... j/k  
  
%^%^%^%^%^%^%^%^%^%^%^^%^%^%^%^%^%^  
  
Ron's eyes flickered with enmity as Hermione withdrew from Harry and started taking tentative steps toward him. "Ron, please..."  
  
"You... you..." Ron sputtered, face flushing. "I can't believe this!"  
  
"Ron, you don't understand-"  
  
"Oh, I understand perfectly, Harry," Ron sneered. "What's not to understand? Dammit, Harry, my best friend and my girlfriend, what's not to understand.  
  
Hermione began to cry. Ron just shook his head in disgust. He turned to leave but stopped, facing only the lone stairway. It was then that Harry realized he could not read Ron's mind. Ron spun to face him, fuming, his voice low and steady. "I trusted you, Harry." And he was gone.  
  
~$~$~$~$~$  
  
Ron was gone. Hermione could not believe that her life had just unfolded in one minute. She sobbed hysterically. Hermione felt Harry gently place his hand on her left shoulder, and she shrugged him off.  
  
^Wow that was strange^ Hermione realized. She had just had a flashback.  
  
FLASHBACK  
  
"She's here, she's here..."  
  
"Yes, Master... will she do?"  
  
"Yes, yes... if she's everything you say..."  
  
"Now what, Master?  
  
"You need the child... the child..."  
  
"Which child?"  
  
"The one who opposed you..."  
  
"You mean..."  
  
"It is only she... only she can help you... I need the power, the power..."  
  
END OF FLASHBACK  
  
"Mione? Mione?"  
  
Hermione shivered at Harry's desolate tone. Shivering, she fleed back to the Gryffindor girls' dorm.  
  
~&~&~&~&~&~&~&  
  
Ron was surprised to see his kid sister wandering the halls of Hogwarts. "Gin, what the hell are you up for? Get back to bed!"  
  
"Oh, hello. Just strolling," she drawled in a tipsy sort of tone.  
  
"Huh? Ginny?" There was something obscure about his sister. Perhaps she was sleep walking. "Ginny, maybe you should go back to bed."  
  
Before she could reply they were interrupted by the wailing and appearance of Hermione. She spotted them, slightly confused. "Ron? Ginny?"  
  
Ron opened his mouth to speak but something from behind slammed him over the head.  
  
Hermione's jaw dropped in horror. "Ginny, why'd you do that?" It was then that she noticed an awry glint in the girl's eyes. A glint she recognized. "Oh my--"  
  
Hermione never did finish that phrase. A spell omitted from Ginny's wand hit her, sending her to the cold, stone floor. 


	5. Agony

A/N: Sorry that I have to make Draco so evil. I truly love D/Hr and D/G fanfics but this was the only way it would work in this story. Please forgive, hope you like! Also, this is kind of boring...  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own my socks either. My parents paid for them.  
  
~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!  
  
A shrill scream echoed throughout the Astronomy Tower as Harry Potter fell to his knees in writhing pain, clutching his scar like he might rip it off. Harry had often received jolts of pain in his off-center lightning bolt scar, but this was unbearable. He would think of death but he could not think, it was amazingly gripping.  
  
After what must have been approximately 45 seconds Harry lay flat, the pain subsiding but still there. It had been seven minutes, lying on the cold floor, when Harry realized that the ache was still there, that before it had just hit its apex. He stumbled up, being able to take the dull ache that now remained in his head. "Her-Hermione?" he croaked weakly, stumbling over nothing and starting down the stairs. "Hermione, come back..." Harry did not realize , for he hurt so much, that his voice was nothing above a whisper.  
  
As he casually tripped over the last stair, little did he know that he stood in the same corridor that Hermione and Ron had just been abducted from. Glancing around, he caught a still figure out of the corner of his eye--Ginny Weasly?  
  
He staggered crookedly over to where Ginny lay, apparently unconcious. Harry yelped, trying to squeeze out the pain and clear his head. ^Must... read... her... mind...^  
  
He screamed, forcing himself not to blink, and stared furiously at her. ^What's going on... why did I do that... Where did Draco go... What did he do...^  
  
Harry fumed at hearing Draco's name. He must have done something to Ginny, and perhaps Hermione and Ron. He hit his head against the stone wall, trying to clear out the aching agonization with no luck.  
  
Pulling himself together, he ran as fast as the pain allowed him to up the stairs to the Slytherin Tower. Patting his side to reassure the presence of his wand, a fresh new wave of torment hit his scar and he stifled his screams, afraid of waking anyone up. He had been reduced to crawling as he petrified the portrait and pushing him aside to gain access.  
  
He pulled himself along the emerald carpet like the snake that Malfoy was. ^Ow, carpet burn!^ he winced, smiling ironically that he could complain about that in his situation. He grabbed the metal bars of Malfoy's bed and hoisted himself up.  
  
Malfoy was gone. Not there, not at all--gone.  
  
In place of the malevolant boy there lay a note scrawled in dripping red ink: "Pansy: You know where I am. I had to do it tonight. Please cover for me. Signed: Draco M." ^Pansy Parkinson...^ The Slytherin girl's name echoed in Harry's mind.  
  
He gasped in anger and frustration and staggered up, swaying dangerously as he slowly made his way back down the stairs to the Slytherin common room. Sometime during the descent he must have fallen, for he found himself at the bottom of the stairs. ^Note to self: Suggest an elevator^ Harry smirked wryly despite his twinges of pain.  
  
He picked himself up and climbed up the girls' staircase, his mind comparing it to Merlin's Peak, the highest mountain in the magic world with rock-climbing oppurtunities. Upon reaching the top, he sat for a moment to catch his breath, then continued into the dorm.  
  
Pansy lay sleeping on her bed in a pedestrian manner, but the sight of her and her connections with Malfoy made him bubble with hatred.  
  
"Petrify, Petrify, Petrify!" he hissed, freezing all in the room with the exception of himself and Pansy. "Pansy!" he yelled, shaking her mercilessly.  
  
She awoke with a shriek, which Harry managed to smother with her green lace pillow. "Pansy, where's Malfoy?" Her eyes opened wide and she shook her head, signifying that she would not tell. "Fine, we'll do this the hard way."  
  
Harry tried to concentrate on her thoughts but was futile as a wave of pain left him wailing. Regaining his composure, he tried again, attempting to ignore the pain that crashed and burned inside his head.  
  
^Malfoy... at He-who-must-not-be-named's lair...^ was what Harry picked up. "Voldemort!? Pansy, where is his `lair', as you call it?" She shook her head, apparently frightened that he had sucked the information straight from her mind, refusing to let on anything else.  
  
Harry concentrated once more, aware that his body was trembling in pain. ^Portkey... behind the hut...^ Before Harry could pick up anymore, he fell to the ground in a spasmodic fit. He saw Pansy ready with her wand, and all that he could do was cry out "Stupify!"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
There was only one hut that Harry knew of in all of Hogwarts and so he painstakingly made his way to Hagrid's. Upon arrival, he heard the heavy snoring of the sleeping groundskeeper, which in a lighter time would have made him chuckle.  
  
The grass was wet and dewy from the day's rain and Harry could feel the slime on his robes as he half-crawled, half-stumbled his way to the back of the poorly constructed small hut. He gazed through eyes blurred with pain tofind some object to be used as a portkey.  
  
He was ready to give up when he slithered 10 yards to a chocolate frog wrapper to find that it truly was trash and not a hidden transportation device when he spotted the Wizard's Guide to Wand Décor. He had to laugh. Hagrid, who kept his latent wand in an old umbrella, would not worry about decorating his wand, and he reached out and grabbed it.  
  
Harry Potter was sucked in and landed in a place that he had never seen before, but felt all too familiar.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Hazel--sorry bout the cliff, hope this helps, but I think I left u with another 1... sry  
  
AznGol--ty very much, u guessed very correctly  
  
BunnyLee--ty, here's ur next chapter... 


	6. Trust Me

A/N: Hello again. Sorry so short, but writer's block... Aaah! Any suggestions? Please review! Only a chapter to go, I think... Well, read...  
  
Diclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, although I think that that is pretty obvious.  
  
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Harry Potter had never been inside the Malfoy mansion but it could only be theirs--the icy, foreboding chill in the room could only match the Malfoys' personalities. He landed smoothly but warily. The pain in his forehead throbbed even more so than before and he gritted his teeth, sure that he felt one of them chip from the pressure.  
  
"Hello?" he called out. He was answered with a slight muffled sound coming from behind him. Harry turned to see... well, nothing.  
  
"Who's there?"  
  
Another muffled sound, and another. "Must be an invisibility cloak," Harry mused aloud, either to himself or to the latent figure. Either way, he began feeling around by following the sounds.  
  
After only about 30 seconds he bumped into something, and felt the cloak. He knocked it off, almost frightened in anticipation.  
  
"Ron?" Harry's eyes opened wide. Ron made a disgruntled noise. The ropes binding him to the chair and the gag on his mouth were shining and sending off sparks, making them look all too suspicious."Ron, are the ropes charmed?" Ron's small range of movement seemed to nod with urgency in his eyes.  
  
"Dammit!" Harry cursed. He needed to know where Hermione was, and what was going on. Suddenly an idea crossed his mind. He stared at Ron, but nothing came. Nothing at all. It was then that he remembered that ever since the tower, he had been unable to reach Ron's thoughts.  
  
"Ron, why can't I read this?" He threw himself on the floor. He closed his eyes and recalled the conversation he had had with Ron.  
  
****REMEMBRANCE****  
  
Ron's eyes flickered with enmity as Hermione withdrew from Harry and started taking tentative steps toward him. "Ron, please..."  
  
"You... you..." Ron sputtered, face flushing. "I can't believe this!"  
  
"Ron, you don't understand-"  
  
"Oh, I understand perfectly, Harry," Ron sneered. "What's not to understand? Dammit, Harry, my best friend and my girlfriend, what's not to understand?"  
  
Hermione began to cry. Ron just shook his head in disgust. He turned to leave but stopped, facing only the lone stairway. It was then that Harry realized he could not read Ron's mind. Ron spun to face him, fuming, his voice low and steady. "I trusted you, Harry." And he was gone.  
  
****END OF REMEMBRANCE****  
  
"Of course!" Harry exclaimed, jumping up with new hope. "Ron, you need to trust me. It's the only way this'll work."  
  
Ron's eyes were very skeptical.  
  
"Come on, Ron," Harry pleaded. "I'm sorry. I wish it had never happened. It destroyed Hermione, and our friendship. You being my best friend means everything. Please, Ron, try!"  
  
He concentrated once more. ^Hermione...^ came through foggily. "Ron, I got her name. But try harder. I'll never break a promise to you again. Do this for Hermione..."  
  
^Voldemort...needs stregnth... uses Hermione... Ginny posessed by... Malfoy...^  
  
"Come, on, come on!"  
  
^...He tapped... Wall behind... Seven times...^  
  
"Thank you, Ron! I'll never forget this!" For one moment he forgot his agony and ran to the wall, and tapped.  
  
Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap... tap. A blur appeared in the wall and Harry stepped through.  
  
"Glad you could join us, Mr. Potter."  
  
Harry Potter looked up to see Voldemort, and Hermione was chained in a corner with metal that glowed even more intensely than Ron's ropes. Harry eyed the apparition warily, looked back to his helpless love and back to Voldemort.  
  
"I wish I could say you were too late. But the process is about to begin."  
  
Harry fell to the floor from a feeling in his head worse than the Crucius curse. ^From the proximity of Voldemort...^ he knew.  
  
"Proximity, eh, Potter?" Voldemort laughed and Harry looked in amazement. "Yes, Harry, you have a Parsel tongue and this from my attempt to kill you."  
  
Harry looked to Hermione. ^You can beat him, Harry... break the connection... break the... connection...^  
  
^Connection?^ Harry thought frantically. ^Of course!^ Harry saw that Voldemort was not looking at him, therefore he was free to think whatever he pleased. ^He must have something keeping him with power. He's not strong enough without...^  
  
^Of course!^ Harry's eyes surged open. He knew what he must do.  
  
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Hey, guys, no reviews last time please send them!!! Ty, love me 


	7. The Scar

A/N: Last chapter, hooray! Please check out my other story "The Men of Cassandra and Ravenclaw" which is totally NOT a mary sue, so don't freak. Harry flirting is inolved, but not a mary sue... I think I have 2 chapters of that up. I hope u like, please review again! 3 u all!  
  
Diclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or Cheez Wiz.  
  
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It had suddenly become very clear to Harry Potter just how Voldemort was alive, all these years. Even without the unicorn blood, turbaned professor, and diary he still was never dead. Harry knew there must be something... something...  
  
A twisted smile crept up on Harry's face as he lifted his shaking hand to his head, very calmly. Voldemort's eyes narrowed. "What are you doing, Potter...?"  
  
Harry just grinned. Hermione's eyes flashed. Voldemort panicked. Harry, with a very, very calm smile, dug his fingernails into his head and tore off a large chunk of his forehead, including... the scar...  
  
As Hermione jumped so hard in her chains that she fell over, Voldemort twisted into a sort of hologram death. "Nooooooo...." was his wail, echoing endlessly thoughout Harry's mind.  
  
Harry felt something warm and sticky completely covering his body and head. "Look, Hermione," he said, woozily. "It's my blood." Harry's eyes rolled into the back of his head and he fell down, very, very still.  
  
Hermione's scream was heard for miles.  
  
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"Look at that!"  
  
"Can you believe it?  
  
"All my--"  
  
Harry's eyes fluttered open to see a few blurry figures standing around him. He opened his mouth to speak, but a small squeak escaped him. One figure turned to him.  
  
"Oh my god!" she screamed. Harry blinked and recognized Hermione Granger. She was beautiful. Next to her stood Ron Weasly, with a stern but concerned expression lining his freckled face. Then was Ginny, lingering around with a blush.  
  
The scream alerted Madame Pomfrey who bustled in to usher the three out. "What... what's going on?" Harry sputtered dreamily.  
  
"I've been given strict orders to have you speak to Albus Dumbldore before anyone else," she said like a phone clerk and was off, returning with the headmaster.  
  
"Harry," Dumbledore twinkled, sitting on a pedestrian stool. "I see your scar has been replaced by that gash." The old man pointed a finger to Harry's head, which Harry just realized that it was throbbing. He felt a bandage, wet and sticky.  
  
Suddenly, it came back. Voldemort, the power supply, Hermione, trust... "I'm quite proud of what you've done Harry," Dumbledore said. "But how did you know about your scar?"  
  
Harry shook his head to clear it. "I'm not sure. It was a feeling. But, whenever he was around, it--" Harry started to slump, feeling faint. But, he regained his health. "It would hurt, when he needed to use it for power. And the lightning bolt--lightning, like energy and electricity. I got it the day he became like it anyway..."  
  
"Quite impressive, young Potter." Harry all of a sudden felt very proud, just knowing that Dumbledore was. "You've saved your friends and vanquished Voldemort... it is safe to say that all of the magic world is in your debt."  
  
"But," Harry pressed, sliding himself into a sitting position. "How did we get here? How did you know we were at--" His eyes shot open wide, remembering Malfoy. "Malfoy! Professor, the Malfoys--"  
  
"Shh, shh," Dumbledore soothed, putting up his hand to stop Harry. "I know, I know. When we found all of the Slytherin girls stupidified, Pansy was charmed to tell us of the Malfoys' plans and your location. Don't worry about Draco." Dumbledore looked up to the doorway. "But I'd better stop hogging all of your time."  
  
As he exited, in came Hermione, in tears, and Ron, looking at the ground. Hermione hugged him. Ron looked at Harry expectantly. "I can't read your mind, Ron..." Harry admitted. "I think it had to do with the scar." This seemed to set Ron at ease.  
  
"Harry... I'm sorry," Ron said, shrugging sheepishly.  
  
"Don't be," Harry whispered. "it's my fault."  
  
"Our fault," Hermione chimed in. "I'm sorry, Ron."  
  
"Yeah well..." Ron gave a quirky smile. "Who am I to stop a couple that was meant to be?"  
  
"You mean that Ron?" Hermione gasped. She threw her arms around Harry, who chuckled weakly.  
  
The nightmare was over, and Harry could live on. No scar, no enemy, no Malfoy... Life was good. And Hermione made it better.  
  
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Please check out my other story, entitled "The Men of cassandra and Ravenclaw" by Elle B  
  
A/N: Hey!!! I'm so done! Yay, I liked how it turned out, hope you all do too! Here's to my reviwers:  
  
Sandie: here's ur next and last chapter  
  
Bookworm4ever: thanks 4 loving it! I like h/h 2, not really h/r...  
  
Bunny Lee: here ya go! Ty very much  
  
Geneathen: sry bout the cliffhanger- I had 2 finger out how 2 end it, I hope ur satisfied w. it  
  
Hazeleyez: ty 4 reviewing again, and 4 support  
  
Mikel: nice metaphor, sry man!  
  
Sugar-n-Spice: sry that u don't like, but I don't c u writing nething. He can rip it off, u cud if u wanted to. I imagine the pain he was in b4 made everything else feel numb. U have a better idea? Uh huh... well, ty 4 being honest although I didn't appreciate it.  
  
Also to AznGolDragonGod, Em, and some doubles!!!  
  
So far only 1 baddie!!! yay 


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